STAR A.D
Strategically sandwiched between the two of the most aggressive songs on the album 'The Gentle Art of Making Enemies' and 'Cuckoo for Caca' shines one of the most diverse tracks on KFAD....STAR AD.
It's an unexpected jazz-funk explosion of glorious theatrics. It wouldn't be out of place played by big band musicians in tuxedos to greased 50s gangsters, almost a Vegas production number.
Billy Gould's bassline frantically rolls up and down its funky and fun. Mike Bordin rattles his toms along with tempo perfectly.
Trey Spruance is let loose on this track with his most 'Bungle-esque' riffs on the album. It's a fantastic example of his expert skills as a guitar player. One if the only songs on the album with a solo ( in contrast to previous records with Big Jim ) he rips through some killer licks.
Roddy Bottum's playful Hammond organ stabs add an almost cabaret feel enhancing the imagery the track creates.
The addition of the live horn section lifts the song and gives it whole new dimension not explored by any other FNM track. The layered stabs, notes and Dan Wilensky's jazz improvisation saxophone solos again hint at Mr Bungle especially the middle section of the song. .
Mike Patton's vocals are silky smooth and a complete contrast to the previous and following tracks. That 'other side' to Patton that began with 'Edge of the World' and culminated in his modern day Frank Sinatra persona in the band 'Mondo Cane'. Maybe at this point it was still a little tongue in check like a tv presenter singing the opening number to a show on mind altering drugs, but it's convincing as hell!!
The lyrics 'seem to snarl against the trap of celebrity, entrapment and the ageing process', in the words of NME. They certainly seem to suggest fame is a curse, something which Patton himself is familiar with going through dramatic changes from TRT era to AD with the soul purpose of discouraging stardom. The very title suggests celebrity is a a obsolete ideal. I may also relate to the 'has been' celebrity who regains his fame in death.
"And when you die
You'll become something worse than dead
You'll become
A legend"
Is taken from the 1965 French film 'Alphaville' directed by Jean-Luc Godard.
Star AD has only made it onto a Faith No More set list on one occasion, in 2011 at the Maquinaria festival, Chile. At this unprecedented event FNM played KFAD in it's entirety with Trey and Jon on guitar. Maybe this sing was so 'Trey' the band didn't want to play it without his guitar.
Quotes by the band:
"I like the chords that the horn guys did during the verses; they sound really thick. That's my favorite part. That and that little spy section... That's a nice little breath of fresh air. It opens up into a space that the album never touches upon anywhere else" - Trey Spruance 1994.
"'Star AD' has that Las Vegas feel that's so beautiful to get into. It's cool to do something like that and hear all the other shit bounce around it." - Mike Bordin 1995.
"Kurt (Cobain) God no! It's about a phenomenon. And if that guy happened to be one, I don't know. It's one of those things that happen; it's a Vegas thing. What could be more shameful than having to change your colostomy bag on stage?! Vegas is great, though. I love it. Welcome to America." - Mike Patton 1994.
"The guitar solo is like Saturday Night Live, that's the vibe. It's so funny because we try to explain to people that we write songs visually. We think of scenes and that's exactly what we wanted to do. We kind of amuse ourselves and that's cool because it means we're growing as musicians." - Bill Gould 1995.